Saturday, January 31, 2009

just over a month ago, i explained my take on the situation in ottawa (read: the disaster). in that post, if you're too lazy to click on the link, my theory was that bryan murray's enormous, un-shuttable trap led directly to dissention and discomfort in the lockerroom, which led directly to senators' losses on the ice (and continues to do so). today's entry is absolutely not a retraction, i'm afraid. i just had another couple of things to add....

my further comments on the subject are three-fold:

1. how the hell is bryan murray still employed ??! this is truly an aberration to me, i honestly do not understand it. over a month later and he's yet to make a player move of any sort (much less one of his superstars). i am not including trips to and from binghamton in this equation.

is melnyk delusional when it comes to murray ?!! because he's clearly confused when it comes to the state of his team.... i mean, he must be to say just DAYS AGO, "This is not an organization that's completely crippled. It needs fine-tuning, it needs some tweaking, it needs a player here, a player there, a few good bounces and that's it."

uh. WHUH ??!? whoah.... someone really needs to come in and pull the effin' plug over there.... or perhaps pulling the trigger may sound more a propos....

2. former sens' defenseman, mike commodore, apparently shared similar thoughts on bryan murray, with the columbus dispatch, to what i outlined last month. my favorite tidbits were, "Bryan Murray said some things to the media that he shouldn't have," and "I'm struggling, the team's struggling, and Bryan's telling the media that I'm a player with no hands and no ability. Then they'd come to me and I'd have to spin it somehow, or try to laugh it off."

commodore doesn't elaborate on how this situation would have made him feel, but one can presume *ahem* uh.... not good. morale sucks --> play sucks --> team loses.

way to go bryan murray, PROOF that you're an effin' genius.

3. i look at the debacle in ottawa, and it re-affirms my faith in the club that i support. while i don't always agree with the decisions sutter has made in the past (most notably, here, is the ference/kobasew trade), i would like to believe that he's learned from them. i think what that trade proved is that, while the NHL is most certainly a business (so players will inevitably get moved), it's imperative to be emotionally invested in your teammates when you're expected to be emotionally invested in the game. on paper, calgary probably came out on top with that deal, but the loss of lockerroom favorite and iggy's best pal, ference, abbreviated the 06/07 season.

there has been a lot of talk, of late, about dealing cammalleri before the deadline to get a return on him (since he'll probably hit free agency july 1, and will command a higher salary than the flames will be able to offer). perhaps i'll re-visit this entry mid-march and call myself an idiot, but i honestly don't believe that daz will cast a line with #13 as bait. it doesn't take a genius to see that cammy's fit right in here, and that there's finally a winger for iggy to compete with. a deep run is possible with the current lineup, and to remove such a key element at this point of the year would be a deathblow....

Friday, January 30, 2009

well the last few weeks have been insanely busy but i should have more time now to actually write some stuff on here. unfortunatly, i don't have a whole lot to write about.

by the sounds of it, glencross might be out with one of those pesky lower body injuries which puts vandermeer back on the fourth line and (presumeably) promotes boyder to play with lombo and moss. this, obviously, makes the fourth line weaker but might inject some energy into the third line (which has been relatively quiet of late).[NOTE: i'm wrong. like thundercats, glenX is GO !]

other than working my tail off, i think the reason i don't have much to say, currently, is based on the fact that the flames are playing some seriously good hockey these days and are an absolute treat to watch... gone are the days of the third period collapse and (for the most part) the flames show up for the majority of the game. gone are the days where we're down a couple goals and i turn the channel, certain that a loss is inevitable. it's a pretty nice place to be....

in saying that, the perverly-less preds are a tough team to predict these days. in the game v. vancouver they fought hard and battled back from a two-goal defecit to beat the 'nucks (which was probably deserving of a loveletter but, hey --i've been busy). this resilience, coupled with the fact that the law of averages dictates that there will eventually be a flames loss, makes me somewhat fearful of tonight's outcome.

'course, i'm also fearful that barry trotz's head will one day turn beet-red and his ears will emit smoke as only a true cartoon character can. so who knows....

[speaking of cartoons, macT's quote the other day was genius, "the 10-2 game is hanging over our heads like a cartoon anvil."]

the gio jersey, which will attend it's first game in its new incarnation, is currently running a 2-0 record. in attempt to see it's effect on the canucks, i wore it through the end of the night on wednesday and really enjoyed the effect.... the downside being, of course, that the gio jersey is also boasting a 1-0 predators record....

Sunday, January 25, 2009

last week's sunday feedback poll proved that people just don't like marc crawford on hockey night in canada. he was the poll winner (loser ???) with a whopping 68% of voters choosing him as their least-favorite guy on the saturday night show. i honestly thought pj stock would give him a run for his money, but he only tallied 14% --probably cause he's such a cute, excitable little guy... more people, apparently, like don cherry than they detest him (11%), leaving craig simpson and "other" (mike milbury, it seems) to clean up the poll's scraps (2% of voters). there were more voters last week than in prior weeks [unless you chumps are voting twice], and i hope that continues. polls are fun.

the gio jersey took home a win on its first outing (thank god) against the blue jackets. i would've ridden that jersey to a win eventually, even if it caused a calgary flames losing skid, so it was nice to get that first W out of the way, right off the bat...

i've been working a ton in the past few weeks, so i don't have a whole lot to write about. this little gem showed up in the trashtalk of my hockey pool on friday, however, and i thought i'd share it:

One of my volunteers works at a trendy and over-priced shoe store on 17th. A few weeks ago, Bertuzzi comes in to buy some shoes. Nothing really remarkable about the exchange - quiet, just half-grunted when the volunteer mentioned that the last goal he scored was pretty sweet, give me my shoes and I will be on my way, thank you very much.

What was remarkable and may create debate on what Todd does away from the rink were his pants. Bert was wearing sparkly jeans. Not the rhinestone ones - that would be a fucking abomination - but shiny, silvery pants. Ones that when they caught the light, reflected like broken glass (kinda like when teens smash a bus shelter and that glass shines there on the pavement).

Pants that some groupie would buy Tommy Lee in '89 were worn by Bert. Pants covered in thousands of tiny disco balls were worn by Bert. Pants that Jett Thunders would love to have but cannot afford because they are probably $500 jeans were worn by Bert.

Time you will never get back.

also totally unimportant but kindof amusing is the fact that "brandon prust +6" apparently appeared on the guestlist for theory of a deadman's show at flames central on friday night...

well, a week without hockey is like a week without sunshine, and i don't count the allstar game, superskills competition or youngstars game as "hockey." they are more like performance art... anyhow, i just can't wait till we get to go back to seasonal play when the flames meet the sabres on wednesday...

Sunday, January 18, 2009

while i don't really dig your uniforms or your logo, i'm pretty glad you gave mike commodore a nice salary (so he can buy me the dinner he owes me), and you gave steve mason a good start. i like those guys, and i also really like freddy modin --even though he kinda boned me in my pool last year... oh, and i really look forward to rick nash suiting up for canada in just less than thirteen months...

but i digress.

i'm still not really sure exactly what you're named for; whether it's a sailor wearing a naval uniform or the war chief of the shawnee people. either way, it doesn't matter cause you went out and stole a point from the canucks for us tonight and that was really cool of you. i mean, it would've been cooler if you'd stolen two but i won't go and be all greedy.

no matter how much i appreciate your efforts tonight, come wednesday i really hope you get your asses handed to you...

yours most sincerely, wixx

[PLEASE CONTINUE TO VOTE IN THE SUNDAY FEEDBACK POLL BELOW, IF YOU HAVEN'T ALREADY !!!!]

i've got a lot of random mind-tidying to do today, since i've been working stupid hours and haven't had the time or energy to write much of anything....

last week's feedback poll was about blue jackets' stellar rookie goaltender, steve mason, and what kind of hardware he was due to pick up at the end of the year. presuming his stats remain consistant, 87% of you think he's a shoo-in for the calder. a further 19% think he'll get the prize for best goalie, and an a couple of folks think he'll either get hart (that would be me and one other guy), or nothing at all (7%) at the year-end ceremony. sure, ovechkin's good and will probably win the award honouring the player most valuable to his team, but i have to say that steve mason deserves a good look.

as i mentioned in a couple of posts this week, my former toronto roommate's first cousin (rich peverley) was placed on waivers by the nashville predators, and picked up the following day by the thrashers. what a move by atlanta... in the two games since, peverley has six points (1G, 5A): nearly equalling his output from the previous 27 games (9 points). i was gonna do a comparison of his icetime as well but apparently game archives (read: from more than two days ago) are impossible to find on the new nhl.com.

as for the flames, they certainly looked flat last night, but i still have hope they'll come out better in denver tonight. i'm sure the first period will be rough, as it always is with this group, (especially following a long night) but i'm hoping the second and third will show a marked improvement. no word if bertuzzi's back in but i will admit to missing his presence on the fourth line. [note: i meant second line but i thought it was funny enough to leave my typo for all to read...]

keenan was on HNIC after hours last night for a segment or two, before jumping a plane to colorado, and while he said nothing outrageously mind-blowing, i did like his demeanour. it took me over a year to decide how i felt about him coming in as a coach, but i do believe you can put my name in the "for" column. i think he's done quite a solid job coaching this team.

my GIO jersey is done and as soon as i have a few minutes to rub together, i'll go pick it up. so if you ever see me sporting it around town, say hi. i'm sure i'll be the only loser with that exact shirt. ;)

anyhow. today's feedback poll is regarding hockey night in canada. i don't think anyone would argue that ron mclean is top-of-the-heap in his profession, and i think the general consensus on kelly hrudey has turned positive.... in saying that...

Tuesday, January 13, 2009

So, it looks like we're going to get to see Jim Vandermeer again tonight, right where I want him: on the fourth line, leaving Mark Giordano and Adam Pardy right where they are. I've been having a hard time with this whole quandary, actually. As much as Vandy wasn't exactly Scott Stevens to start the season, I generally like his angry presence and size in the lineup — just not as much as I like what Gio and Pardy have brought to the table since he's been out.

All that said, I also haven't convinced myself that a career defenceman is going to be aces as a right-winger just because he's a big body and likes to muck it up in the corners. That line does do more cycling and hitting than anything, and if I was Opposing Defenceman I wouldn't want to have to face a forechecking Nystrom-Roy-Vandermeer, but I think players grow instincts over time, and I'm also not really sure who's going to centre that line if, as Cruickshank suspects, this move bumps Boyd up to Bertuzzi's spot on the second line. (If that does happen, it's another fringe benefit of this whole injury gaggle, even if the benefit is only to prove bloggers like me right, that Boyd's been unreasonably hidden with the pluggers all season, and if only he could play with some OK linemates he'd be on pace for 88 goals.)

Also: This feels like the 10th time the Flames have played the Blues this year, because St. Louis is such a chore to watch. I know a lot of the feeling I'm about to describe has to do with their mountain of injuries, but I have to say it: What a boring-ass team. Frankly, even if Erik Johnson, Andy McDonald and Paul Kariya weren't broken, would they be that much better? Or better to watch? Everyone wanted to fall all over themselves to praise Andy Murray when he made the Blues respectable upon arrival a couple of years ago, but Ron Wilson is doing more with a crappier group than Murray is doing with Alex Steen, Carlo Colaiacovo and friends. Brad Boyes gets a bunch of goals but is a minus-23. Their second-leading scorer is still Keith Tkachuk. David Perron, Patrik Berglund and T.J. Oshie look to have futures, but don't look to be guys who'll lead a team for years to come.

Frankly, the only guy other than Oshie who I'll be looking for tonight is Janssen, who the Flames have had their eye on ever since he tried to take Brandon Prust's head off, and is definitely in competition now for League's Biggest Asshole (Who Doesn't Wear An Undershirt).

Prediction: Pete Loubardias has general words of praise for the games of: Cory Sarich, Daymond Langkow, Adam Pardy and Jim Vandermeer (Direct prediction for that one: "And Vandermeeeeer, has acquitte himself QUITE well for his first game back, I must say!" I kid 'cause I love, Loubardias has done a very nice job this year.)

Sunday, January 11, 2009

last week's sunday feedback question, spurned by the unfortunate death of don sanderson after an on-ice fight gone terribly wrong, was regarding whether or not fighting should continue to be allowed in the NHL. 72% of you voted in favour of leaving everything as-is in that capacity (although steal thunder queried why returning to the old fighting rules ---no instigator, presumeably here--- was not an option in the poll)... a couple of people voted for the removal of fighting altogether, and another five jokers took the "only if they fight like alex semin" bait. damn, i love that highlight...

this week, the midway-point of the season, i'm fascinated by the high-end consistency (though relatively small sample size) of one player, and i wonder if his age will prevent him from winning awards at the year-end ceremony.

NOTE: this week's feedback poll allows you to select more than one answer

Saturday, January 10, 2009

Much was made of the Flames' 0-6 record against the San Jose Sharks, Detroit Red Wings and Chicago Blackhawks before the big 5-2 dismantling of San Jose this past week. And it was fair enough — the only other Flames win over another team in the league that would be considered in the elite was a 3-2 win over Boston at home on Oct. 30.

But for all those early troubles against good teams, the Flames have, primarily, done what they've had to in compiling a 41-game record that leaves them on pace for a 108-point season, and is seemingly still improving. This is a team that's overachieved — to the expectations of most of its blogging community, anyway.

So, to the halfway point, how has each member of the team performed against my expectations?

That's a big group of players to have played better than expectations, even if only two regularly play in your Top 6 forwards, and one in your Top 4 defencemen. (And if one, Bertuzzi, is playing against expectations that for me were perhaps at an historic low.) Aucoin has been a surprise revelation paired with Robyn Regehr. While perhaps not the perfect partner for the Flames' best defenceman, he's been anything but a liability in the position for the past 20 games.

For all the chatting we've done about other contracts this year, Daymond Langkow's ongoing excellence — and recent hot streak — have outed his $4M/yr deal as a crazy-ass bargain. For me, I didn't expect much different after recent years — he doesn't seem like the kind of guy to "slow down." It's unfortunate that we all basically expect an average performance out of Miikka Kiprusoff now, but fortunate that the Flames can play this well with that being the case.

UNDERACHIEVED• Jarome Iginla• Dion Phaneuf• Matthew Lombardi

The fact that the Flames' two highest-paid, and best, skaters are on this small list may be perhaps the biggest reason for optimism about Calgary's second half. It's hard to believe that Jarome Iginla won't start taking over games that matter. At least, I haven't seen anything in the first 41 that makes me think he's anything but in a funk with his timing and without the right linemates.

As for Phaneuf? He's still a young player, he's still being asked to do absolutely everything, he's still wearing a letter for the first time as a pro and he's still being distracted by Kim Bauer. All these things will pass, and those big-old one timers and open ice hits will return.

When it comes to Matthew Lombardi, my expectations have now been diminished. This isn't, I stress, necessarily a horrendous thing. Would we all love it if he became a 70- or 80-point scoring centre? Yes. But what he's become — a reliable, fast, defensive forward who can occasionally chip in offensively — is a valuable asset as his price point. I'll take it.

Friday, January 9, 2009

kris chucko, calgary's first round draft pick in 2004 and everyone's favorite quad cities whipping boy, has got to be pissed off by this week's turn of events...

following the selection of dion phaneuf in the first round of the 2003 nhl entry draft, calgary picked up a bunch of players: mostly duds (ramholt, donnally, cunning, and a bunch of guys you've never heard of). the following year, the flames took chucko 24th overall, ahead of robbie schremp, mike green (!), david booth, david krejci, and the kid i used to babysit, logan stephenson.

the insertion of backlund into the fray last night seemed to be more of a series of fortunate events than anything; coming off a WJC silver medal and unsure of where to place him, darryl sutter brought the kid to cowtown. bertuzzi goes out with an injury and POOF ! you've got a rookie centering moss and glencross to start the game.

the best way to describe backlund's play last night ? nervous. after nearly potting his first shot (i'm not sure if i think he should've raised the puck, or if joey macdonald would've had it either way), he went on to totally whiff on a bouncing puck, three feet from a wide open net on a powerplay. the shift prior to the isles first goal was a defensive disaster by the third line --backlund being guilty on two occasions of not being able to clear the puck over the line. i would like to think a couple of extra practices with moss and glencross would have improved his outing, but realistically he looks exactly like he did in pre-season when he showed that he was nowhere near ready for nhl action (yet ever so full of potential)...

if i were chucko, i'd be starting to understand that i'm a career AHLer.

Thursday, January 8, 2009

this post will be a short one cause i don't really have time today to do a pre-game, but i'm writing it for the neighbours i grew up with; the ones i played TV tag with, had sleepovers with, drank BEEP with (at their house, my mum would never buy that stuff), and found my initial love for hockey with.

i'm not sure who invented it, but hand-hockey became the favorite passtime during the winter months when we couldn't go outside. it was played in my parents' basement and the opposing nets were the piano and the brown hide-a-bed couch. we would roll up a pair of socks, get down on our hands and knees, and use our hands as a hockey stick. it was one-on-one styles and i was the baby of the neighbourhood, so inevitably games would end when one of the bigger kids (usually mike) would pop a rolled up sock straight into my face.

because i was the youngest, i was the last to pick my team. my brother was the flames, mike (who lived across the street) was the blackhawks, and the next-door-neighbours were the sabres (grant) and the kings (monique). why i remember this, i have absolutely no idea....

i'm not sure how much i actually knew about hockey, back when i was six or seven years old, but i think i knew enough to know that i liked mike bossy, the isles had been successful in a few cup runs, and that billy smith had somehow managed to score a goal. i realize it's a travesty now that i'm a rangers fan, and that i was cheering for the blueshirts when i attended the subway series in 2005, but back in the day my hand-hockey team was always the new york islanders... and i've kindof had a soft spot for 'em ever since.

tonight the orange-and-blues roll into calgary with a far less flattering record than the one they had when i loved them oldschool hand-hockey styles. no beating around the bush, this team is abysmal. the isles have only two regulation wins in the past seventeen games, so it would be simple to say that tonight's matchup should be a fairly easy W for the flames. somehow, though, those are the toughies, and the isles are certainly due for a victory...

adding to my concern for the C's: with my GIO jersey in the shop, i'm reverting to the jrXL for tonight's game that i will be attending with my dad. he's assured me that his jersey's good fortune will take away some of my old shirt's bad juju, and that clearly the jrXL is also past due for a nice win...

Wednesday, January 7, 2009

my boy mark giordano came up big against the league-leading sharks last night, ending the night with a goal, the #2 star, a +3, and more time on the powerplay than anyone else in a flaming C. this, coupled with the fact that just yesterday i sent my 10-1-2 jersey off to get numbered with a "5" and lettered with "GIO," obviously means that gio's days in calgary are numbered....

i really thought the flames would come out flat last night ---historically, that's been the M.O against elite teams--- so i opted to head out to the pub where the game would be available to me but i wouldn't be forced to give a blowout my undivided attention.

well, obviously that was unnecessary. but since i was already out, i had to enlist duncan to explain the following, by text message:

- re: the backlund interview (which i could see but not hear): " Did you catch Backlund saying 'it's Darryl's choice' about Kelowna, then talking clearly that he's definitely going ? Classic."

- re: the shot of the squirrel sitting on one of the club seats: "They just spotted it in the crowd and cracked jokes." [note: i WOULD still like to know what kind of jokes....]

Tuesday, January 6, 2009

the ever-awesome sharks roll into the saddledome tonight to meet a faltering flames squad in a déja-vu situation. the last time these teams met, the flames had just dropped a shocking 6-1'er to the hawks and embarassed themselves in the sharktank.

well, we all know what's happened since then and there's really no point in getting into the fact that the flames are coming off a bad outing in chicago and look to redeem themselves against the winningest team in the league. likely ? probably not, but here's to hoping....

also strange was the call-up of jamie lundmark from the qc on jan4 (sunday), promptly followed by his apparent return to the farm yesterday (jan 5). this, of course, leads me to believe that someone in the flames' current starting lineup is on the bubble, either physically or personally....

but what i REALLY want to talk about today is this, and this. i mean, i'm not saying that mike fisher isn't deserving of a beautiful blonde starlet (or she of a blue-eyed hockey player), i'm just wondering where two cats like that meet ??!? i have some doubts that underwood was spending her downtime in our nation's capital, and the sens don't play the preds till mid-february... i dunno... perhaps jesus brought them together....

in other gossippy hockey "news," this page six article, about everyone's favorite "former" NHLer, put a smile on my face:

The former New York Ranger showed up at Bungalow 8 New Year's Eve on the arm of - his brother. A spy at the club said that Avery and his girlfriend of several months, Kelly Klein, have split - "They're no longer together." Avery was dumped by the Dallas Stars last month after he made a nasty comment about his ex, Elisha Cuthbert. He tried to make up for lost time at Bungalow 8, flirting with women and hanging with former teammates Scott Gomez, Chris Drury, Nigel Dawes and Marcus Nasland[sic].

i wonder if avery's brother picks up chicks with the line, "i know my brother's a douche, but i'm not...."

also, obviously huge congrats go out to the canadian junior team for pulling out a mostly-boring gold medal win... i suppose it was expecting far too much to think that last night's matchup might provide as much entertainment as the semifinal game v. russia, but without markstöm's dramatics and karlsson's moustache, this one would have been a total yawner. the results are back from CSI: backlund, and it turns out the swedish forward was directly responsible for the tre kronor loss... the winning goal was scored on a play where he lost his man AND tried the patented "warrener move," and two other key goals were scored while he was in the penalty box. all signs point to kelowna for this little guy....

Sunday, January 4, 2009

is it fair to put bertuzzi's game-winner with 30 seconds left in the same category as eberle's tying goal with 5 seconds remaining ? comparing a meaningless regular season matchup between non-rivals versus an elimination semi-final between elite hockey countries ?? probably not. but those were two clutch plays... two beautiful dying-seconds markers.

so bertuzzi proves his worth once again (any more of this kindof play and we'll have to find adjectives other than "useless" to describe it), and eberle makes a strong campaign for MVP of the entire tournament. amazing.

the flames play again tonight in chicago, and that will be a hard win to earn. if there is any resemblence to the team that notched W's in minnesota and nashville, this will be an easy outing for the 'hawks. it's interesting that duncan theorized that elite teams, though outplayed in matches such as those, are still able to find a way to win. kent, on the other hand, views these types of games as precursors to a slump. i think the next couple of games (chicago, san jose) will go a long way in proving one theory or the other....

the canadian junior team has a day of rest today before the big gold medal round tomorrow, and it's decidedly tough to predict a winner. the canadians beat the swedes in pre-tournament play 4-2, but the swedes man-handled the russians (who gave the canadians such a hard game yesterday) 5-0. it should be an amazing matchup...

flames fans should relish in the thought of two top prospects facing off against each other, as backlund and aulie both appear to be at the top of their games.

on a totally unrelated topic, if you haven't already seen the replay of alexander semin's "fight" with marc staal, i implore you to click here. not only does he fight like a wuss, he's not smart enough to tie down.... it's a good thing, too, cause it really took alot of the bad press off of sidney crosby, who mugged brett mclean last night....

as for the sunday feedback, last week's poll shows that nobody really agrees upon who will sit when vandermeer returns to the flames' lineup. pardy, vandermeer, and "a rotation of healthy scratches" were the most popular responses, and giordano got zero votes ---surprising in that he currently plays the least minutes....

Saturday, January 3, 2009

Friday, January 2, 2009

now that the hangover has subsided, i would like to wish everyone out there in readerland a very happy new year and all the best for 2009. :)

the folks over at the new york times slapshot blog have given their inaugural hockey night in blogdom group (myself included) one last kick at the can before they usher in some fresh blogger blood.

Besides your team winning the Stanley Cup, what is the most heartfelt wish you have for hockey in 2009?

Well, a fifth straight gold for the Canadians at the World Juniors would sure make for a happy new year. Beyond that, I have to hope that Mats (bless ’im) turns out to be the biggest dud in Canucks history, and that the team’s disappointment drags them out of playoff contention.

you can link to all of the other answers here, if you're at all interested in what the league's other independent bloggers have to say...

the new year's tilt at the 'dome was awesome, as it always is. it's the first game i put dibs on when the tickets are released in september, and it's always a really fun time (even though this year i might have had an extra pint or two, celebrating british new years, enroute to the battle of alberta)... hats were passed around, the iggy holler got yelled, and the folks in our section were high fiving like it was going out of style... oh, and the flames kicked the pants off those pesky oilers...

my jersey is now 9-0-2 and sadly letter-less.

i'm thinking about doing a live blog for tomorrow's afternoon game (1pm local) against the predators. please feel free to comment here if you think it would be something you'd be interested in taking part in.... then i'll figure out how to use cover it live.